How will Heart of the Swarm affect SC2 players?

Could the unfathomable happen - the introduction of Heart of the Swarm hurt eSports? In all honesty the answer - yes. Now don’t start writing me hate mail just yet, take a moment to consider the impact of introducing Heart of the Swarm Beta could have on the professional player base. What if the current SC2 pros were forced to choose between, continuing to play Wings of Liberty and switching over to the new Heart of the Swarm Beta?

When the Wings of Liberty (WOL) Beta was introduced a number of professional Brood Wars players converted. Those who didn’t – found themselves in an awkward position. Initially there were not many incentives to play WOL – there weren’t many tournaments, and game balance issues were still being resolved. That said, as the number of Wings of liberty events slowly increased, Brood War was slowly dying. Eventually Brood War events began to fall, and players who were attempting to convert at this stage were faced with a problem – they were behind. As a result, many that converted part way through were unable to win the cash prizes and sponsorships they needed to continue playing professionally. Many great Brood Wars players were lost in this manner.

Whilst many might highlight that this is merely an expansion and not a sequel, they have not taken into account how drastic the coming unit changes will be. StarCraft players have always prided themselves on their surgical skill, however if a surgeon was to use a machete instead of a scalp they would be unable to make the correct incision. Ideologically speaking the unit changes will have the same effect.

The Viper (The new flying-caster Zerg unit) alone with its current design is able to ‘abduct’ units. Abducting, say an enemy Colossus, will dramatically change the way in which engagements occur. When professional players are making over 100 moves a minute, a slight alteration in the game can have devastating effects.

The recent increases in the popularity of alternative real time strategy (RTS) games such as League of Legends and DOTA 2, may also pose a significant threat, drawing away potential players and sponsors. These games will be able to pick up players whom miss out on Heart of the Swarm betas, and possibly convert them to their game. There will be little attraction for players to pick up Wings of Liberty, with Heart of the Swarm on the horizon, and so many alternatives. Blizzard has to ensure that they did not miss the chance to gain the next generation of professional gamers.

So will Heart of the Swarm claim the scalps of so many loved Wings of Liberty players? Professionals are going to again face a similar issue; short term wins by staying with WOL, or a long term gain by gaining an early ‘converter’ advantage. Blizzard needs to work hard to ensure that they can secure new and upcoming professional players; else StarCraft may lose its footing in the eSports world.